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Motorists across Spain could be looking at petrol prices of €2 per litre by 2027, a hefty 35% increase on what we're paying today. The culprit is a new EU carbon trading scheme designed to phase out traditional combustion engines entirely.

 

Restrictions and rising costs are only set to intensify until both petrol stations and the vehicles that use them disappear completely. The sale of new petrol and diesel cars is expected to be banned by 2035, a move that’s been strongly backed by Spain.

 

Drivers could be in for even more headaches as Spain is also facing pressure from Brussels to scrap the tax advantage that diesel currently enjoys, which would push diesel prices closer to petrol rates even before the carbon scheme kicks in.

 

Right now, Spain's car fleet tells quite a different story from the EU's electric dreams. Around 60% of vehicles run on diesel, with another 34% using petrol. Electric cars barely register in the statistics.

 

What's more, according to the Spanish Association of Automobile and Truck Manufacturers (ANFAC), the average vehicle age sits at 14.5 years and keeps climbing. The reality is that many people in Spain simply can't afford to buy new cars, let alone pricey electric vehicles.

 

The scheme causing all this concern is officially called the Emissions Trading System for Buildings and Road Transport, known as RCDE2 for short. When it launches in 2027, companies will have to pay for every tonne of CO₂ they generate by purchasing allowances through auctions.

 

For many fuel suppliers, these new business costs could prove impossible to bear, potentially forcing smaller operators to close up shop.

 

The RCDE2 won't just target petrol stations either. It applies to all fuel suppliers, whether they're selling petrol, diesel, natural gas or anything else. That's how the cost of a litre of petrol could reach the €2 mark.

 

For now, these figures are expert predictions rather than certainties, so we'll have to wait until 2027 to see how companies compete for those CO₂ allowances and what the real impact on prices turns out to be.

 

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